A Little Too Late
by Emmapuff
Summary: What if Sherlock Holmes never told Molly he loves her?


Sherlock Holmes loved Molly Hooper. He hated himself for falling in love with a woman who was currently getting over him. Whenever he had the right moment to tell her he loved her, she would walk away or ignore him. On one particular day Sherlock walked into the lab with a cup of coffee for her in his hand, but only found her giggling at a text someone sent her. Feeling an ache somewhere deep inside him, he placed the cup of coffee on the counter, leaving her, without her ever noticing him. When she did notice the coffee on the counter hours later, she threw out the cold drink.

Weeks passed with no luck for Sherlock Holmes.

When he walked into the morgue one evening, he found a tall man embracing his pathologist. He looked nothing like Sherlock. Nothing like _Tom_. He had short, light brown hair and a bit of a more muscular build. When Sherlock saw the man reach down and kiss Molly, he felt another pang, this time registering it as in his heart.

A few months later Molly was still seeing the man whose name was Matthew. The man whom Sherlock found nothing wrong with, the man who stole _his_ pathologist's heart. Sherlock could tell Molly that he loved her, but he didn't want to spoil anything. For once Molly was truly happy and he did not want to ruin it for her, as much as it hurt him on the inside that she was happy with someone else.

More and more months passed and Sherlock walked into the morgue for what seemed like the millionth time, just to see if Molly had broken it off with Matthew. That maybe he did have a chance to be with her. But as he walked in, Molly was beaming. He realized she was adorning a new ring on her left hand. _It disgusted him_. She quickly told Sherlock about how _marvellous_ her date was and how Matthew purposed at the _perfect_ time. Sherlock ignored the rest of her rambling about Matthew as he felt himself shatter inside. He felt as if someone ripped a hole through his heart, taking out the woman who mattered the most to him. Sherlock was fully aware that he was too late to tell Molly his feelings... There was no way Matthew and Molly would break it off. _Matthew isn't another Tom._

Almost a year later Sherlock was sitting at an elegant table next to John, Mary, Lestrade and Mrs Hudson. He watched as everyone stood when Molly walked down the aisle, keeping her eyes solely focused on Matthew, the man she was going to marry. To Sherlock Molly looked utterly beautiful in her white gown that clung to her small frame and drifted to the floor. He then wondered what his life would be like if he told Molly that he loved her all those years ago. _He_ would be the one in place of Matthew, the one who would get to spend the rest of his life with her.

When Sherlock heard both Molly and Matthew mutter an, 'I do,' he didn't get up and clap, he didn't even cheer or smile. He sat there, the only shallow one against the crowd. As everyone left the chapel and headed for photos, Sherlock put on his coat, leaving the whole wedding in general. He couldn't stand to look at Molly happy with any other man except for himself.

Another year passed. Sherlock kept to himself mostly, concerning John and Mary quite a lot. When Sherlock found out about the pregnancy of Molly he hid away in his flat, locking himself in his room. He barely ate. He barely slept. He looked horrible. No one could help him. John and Mary had a feeling what was wrong and tried to find out more, but Sherlock wouldn't talk. Even Mycroft, who caught on about the whole 'losing Molly' business tried to get his brother back on his feet, but even he couldn't help. Sherlock was wallowing in his own self-regret knowing it was his own fault that Molly went off and married another man.

As Molly's family grew she soon moved out of London to some rural area far away, leaving everyone including Sherlock behind. Then somehow everything went hazy to him...

0o0

Right then Sherlock Holmes suddenly shot awake, finding himself sweaty and tangled in bed sheets, feeling scared, as if he lost someone he loved.

_It was just a dream, _he realized.

He automatically felt around for the small body next to him in his bed, wrapping his arms around her. He nuzzled his nose against her neck, breathing in the calming scent of Molly _Holmes_.

_Only a dream..._

"Sherlock? Are you okay?" He heard Molly mumble, her voice a bit raspy from sleep.

"Molly I love you," he said, holding her tight as if he was going to lose her forever.

"I love you too," she said hazily, slowly drifting off again.

Sherlock's large hand drifted down to Molly's swelling stomach, a slow smile spreading across his face. Right then Sherlock Holmes realized that a life without Molly wouldn't be a life at all.


End file.
